J Grade Single Barrel Trap Gun

[SmithShady]

I've had a Fox Single Barrel Trap Gun on my wish list for some time now, and was finally able to scratch that itch at the Northeast SXS. Many thanks to Paul for giving me the opportunity to care for such a great gun. It's a 32" gun with a half pistol grip, full choke, and was originally shipped to Shoverling, Daly & Gales of NYC for stock. No record of the year according to the JTC Letter, but he does mention that the previous serial number was in 1926, and the later was shipped in 1930. The best part is that the original hang tag still accompanies this gun. I took her out to Drake Landing and shot a round of singles at the Five Stand as there are no trap fields in my area. I broke 23 out of 25 my first time shooting it. I can't wait to get her on the Trap Fields at Backwoods Quail Club in October. I haven't broken out the camera on my own guns in a while, and this one definitely deserved a photo shoot, so here you go.

Mike

[Mills]

That is sweet!!!

[ROMAC]

Someday, one just like it is on my bucket list!

[jolly bill]

Outstanding job with the camera showing an exceptional single.

Jolly

[Silvers]

Wow! Thanks for sharing Mike. I know it took some time to take and post the pics. She's a wonderful example that will turn heads on the trap fields. Nothing against modern trap guys with ladder rib guns, kamikazi stocks, etc but ya gotta wonder sometimes ...... I often shoot birds on call on sporting courses with a J-Grade and it's loads of fun.

Just one more example, how traveling to the better SxS shoots and shows and making Fox friends can get you a heads up on good guns. A friend once wrote words to that effect: they're not gonna come knockin on your door. I often shake my head how gents won't arrange things at home to drive a few hours to an event like the NE SxS, the VC or the Southerns, then they ask how you guys seem to come up with such nice Foxes.

Frank

[MARSHFELLOW]

Mike, fantastic pictures..... great gun....enjoy.

tjw

[eightbore]

Mike, you should have held out for a gun with some condition. By the way, what's on the butt? Congratulations. Murphy

[Fin2Feather]

Flat out gorgeous!

[fox-admin]

Mike you did good--- congratulations and thanks for the great pictures. Craig

[xewizzard]

Stunning pictures of a truly fine gun. Makes me think of throwing my camera away. Thanks for posting.

[Socko]

Absolutely beautiful. What a great addition to any collection.

[SmithShady]

Now Bill, you just asked to see the Beauty Queen without her makeup!

If you look closely at the full picture of the gun (19 down), you can see the beginnings of a small Monte Carlo stock extension where the stock has been cut and added back. On top of that sits an original but crushed pad, which could be a Jostam? Not trying to hide it, but to take pictures without the gun resting flat on a table, it had to be suspended in the air a decent distance from the backdrop. This means resting the front of the barrel on a stand, and the same with the back end, using clamps on the end of the stock to hold it upright. Those clamps meant no pictures of her backside.

[mike campbell]

That's a beautiful gun and spectacular photography. You might want to consider a padded rod in the bore to suspend the gun. Some stand the gun on the rod, shoot it vertically and rotate the pic. More complicated, but I built a stand to suspend it horizontally with a rod in the barrel.
Again, kudos for the photography.

[eightbore]

Mr. Campbell is right on. My late friend Michael Petrov, over on the doublegunshop "Single Barrel and Custom Rifles" subforum, posted a tutorial about his use of the rod. It allows the gun to be rotated very easily. His pictures are extremely nice.

[SmithShady]

Mike & Bill, just wanted to say thanks for the idea of suspending the gun on a rod. I built a very sturdy stand that will allow me to stand guns upright with a 7/8 in steel rod in one of the barrels for support. This allows me to easily rotate the the gun in order to take pictures of all sides, even with the breach opened. I've wrapped the rod in order to protect the barrels, and used this successfully to shoot a rather large gun collection the weekend before last. It made for much more efficient shooting, and easier management of my lighting. Thanks again for sharing a great idea!

Mike